Gabe Sapolsky Looks Back At EVOLVE’s 2019 WWE Network Live Event

EVOLVE held a live event on the WWE Network five years ago yesterday, and Gabe Sapolsky took to social media to reflect on the event. The event was the only independent event to stream live on the Network, and Sapolsky posted to his Instagram account to write:

I have been reminded several times today that it is the 5th anniversary of the EVOLVE live event on the WWE Network, the only independent wrestling event to ever broadcast live on WWE Network.

I look back with a lot of mixed emotions now. It was such a glorious day. I still say it is the show I am most proud of in my indie booking career. Yes, that includes ROH and DGUSA.

I can’t help but let some of the negative thoughts cloud my experience. It was supposed to be the start of something, and then there was a pandemic. We lost Heath Schneider (pictured with me and Sal at ringside). I was fired right when things should have taken off. There was another event that cost me a lot of money and frayed my sanity. Since that time, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time.

There are many, many more positive memories and career highlights. We pulled off a live PLE with minimal production help from WWE. A true testament to @mr.blkmjk. I got to be part of bringing Paul Heyman back to the ECW Arena. I will always cherish that. We all pulled together as a team and delivered an event that drew high praise from Paul Levesque and others at WWE. I was surrounded by talent from various chapters of my career and that was really special for me. I got to share the experience with my son. There’s so much more.

It’s interesting to see what has happened to everyone on this show since then. Some good, some bad. I just hope everyone holds the day in their memory for how special it is.

Always remember, this was supposed to be a climb to a pinnacle, but we fell due to a series of events that had less than a 1% chance of happening. It would have been easy to just die. My gas tank was on empty, but now I’m proud of the perseverance and excited about what the future could bring. Always take the blow on the chin and move forward.

The EVOLVE 10th Anniversary Show is now in my rearview mirror. Maybe in another 5 years when we hit the 10 year anniversary of the 10th Anniversary show, I’ll look back at the road that has been traveled again. It definitely promises to be very interesting and could be even better than ever.

Finally, a big “thank you” to everyone who was a part of this day.

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